NATURAL BORN CHEATERS

When discussing resistance exercise (i.e., lifting weights), you routinely hear the term "proper or strict form." Most who exercise are familiar with the term, yet few truly apply the principle to their fitness routine. How can it be that we consistently leave out such a critical element? Simply put: it goes against our basic design.
When you perform a physical task - let's say, pick up a box - your body recruits every available muscle for the job. This "division of labor" keeps one particular area of the body from being overworked. Resistance training is the EXACT opposite! Each exercise is designed to fatigue one area of the body and practicing proper form (in theory) keeps other muscles from helping. In essence: we are naturally inclined to cheat or exhibit poor form when we lift weights.

The key to overcoming this dilemma is through movement analysis. I'll use the bicep curl as an example: When I do a bicep curl, the only part of my body that should move is my forearm. Once my elbow moves either forwards or backwards, the angle of resistance is changed and my bicep gets relief. This is why you see people arching their back or throwing their elbows forward while performing this exercise. Their body is simply looking for the most efficient way to complete the movement. Keeping those elbows along the sides of the body and not swaying the torso effectively removes any assitance leverage might provide.

Proper form dramatically affects the amount of weight you can lift. You must understand, however, that you lifted more because you used other muscles (or leverage) to complete the movement. Although you are moving fewer pounds, you are actually making greater use of your energy by focusing on an specific area.
Through concentration and adjusted resistance, one can go against our basic design and focus on a particular area while resistance training. The benefit is more effective use of your energy towards reaching your fitness goals.

Workout must-have gadget


Polar F5 Heart Rate Monitor Watch

Ideal for general fitness, running, and other cardio workouts, the Polar F5 heart rate monitor watch combines all the necessary heart rate features with a sleek, high-quality design.
For weight management, running in the 60- to 70-percent zone helps you burn fat and build endurance. Or you can increase your overall fitness by doing tempo runs in the 70- to 80-percent zone. Best of all, heart rate monitors aren't just for competitive runners, as casual joggers will also find them invaluable.
The F5 is packed with innovative training features to help you toward your exercise goals, including Zone Pointer and OwnCal modes. The Zone Pointer is an audible and visual feature on the display of your F5 that shows you where your current heart rate sits within your target heart rate zone. Polar OwnCal, meanwhile, shows your energy expenditure during one exercise session, as well as your accumulated kilocalories during several exercise sessions. You can also set daily and weekly exercise goals in terms of calorie expenditure, helping you achieve both short-term and long-term goals.

From Jeff


When you tackle your health and fitness goals with the same level of intensity and tenacity you apply to maintaining your present standard of living, you will meet with similar success - an investment in the quality of the rest of your life. Now what could be a wiser investment than that?

I am a certified and insured personal trainer with over ten years experience helping others achieve their individual health and fitness goals through developing and administering cutting edge, exciting and effective training programs. It is my mission to enhance your quality of life through promoting and encouraging healthier living habits, including the importance of proper nutrition and regular exercise.

Whether your goals involve weight loss, strength training, cardiovascular improvement, increased flexibility, decreased stress, or general fitness, I can prepare a customized training program for you and train you in the comfort of your home, office, or fitness facility. Boxing, boot camp, mountain biking, and active isolated stretching are among the myriad of activities offered.

If improving your health through fitness is of interest to you, contact me to schedule a free initial fitness assessment, which includes skin fold body composition analysis, blood pressure reading, target heart rate calculation, body circumference measurements, core/upper body strength & cardiovascular fitness level assessment. This information is required in order to design an appropriate program and help set fitness goals.

For more information on our programs and services and to schedule a free initial fitness evaluation, contact me directly at:
Chizeled Physiques
786.439.9498
info@chizeled.net

Good luck and good health,


Jeff Mendoza, CPT, HFS

Give yourself a better mat


NEW! Eco Yoga Mat -- Good for you and the earth

One of the most environmentally friendly yoga mats, this new Eco Yoga Mat is excellent for any consistent practice of Yoga. Its rubber underside grips the floor and jute fabric/rubber mix on top offers superb traction. The fabric gives a highly durable, tactile and pleasantly natural surface to practice on and the rubber gives excellent grip. A mat ideal for all Yogis and Yoginis as the Jute mat combines a cloth surface and sticky mat in one and might remind you of walking barefoot on the earth. (contains latex). 74" x 24" -- 4mm Thickness

FAT VERSUS LEAN BODY MASS

The scale is NOT a true indicator of whether or not you are losing fat. Your weight is divided into two separate and distinct groups: fat and lean body mass. Let's elaborate briefly on the two...

FAT: In a nutshell, fat is stored energy for the day you have no food. Waaaaaaay back in the caveman days, we hunted for our meals and had no idea where (or when) the next piece of food was coming from. Consequently, we evolved into creatures that stored excess calories in preparation for those lapses in feeding. Fat is what excess calories are converted to for storage. Fast forward to today and guess what --- there's food EVERYWHERE! We consume so many excess calories that we (get this) BECOME OVERWEIGHT!!! All this excess energy is metabolically inactive (i.e, not living tissue)-- that is, fat does not require any energy to survive in your body.

LEAN BODY MASS: This one is easy to explain -- lean body mass is everything in your body that is not fat. Skin, muscle, bone, organs -- all these things are metabolically active (i.e., living) tissue and thus require calories to exist.

Considering the aforementioned, it stands to reason that the more lean body mass we have on our body, the more calories we will burn each day. When you start burning more calories than you eat every day, you will force your body to dip into that storage bin of energy called "fat."

Once we reach adulthood, the only aspect of lean body mass that we can increase is muscle. This is why resistance training is just as important as cardiovascular training when fat loss is one's goal. This is also why we cannot rely solely on the scale in determining whether we are losing fat. Body composition assessments distinguish between fat and lean body mass and therefore serve and a more accurate indicator of fat loss, muscle increase, or both.

In my next posting, I will go into detail about the various methods used to perform body composition assessments.

Healthy cereal


Kashi GOLEAN Crunch! Cereal, Honey Almond Flax, 15-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 4)

Case of four 15-ounce boxes of seven-grain almond and flax cereal (60 total ounces). Made with honey-sweetened seven-grain clusters, sliced almonds, and whole flax seeds, Naturally sweetened with honey and cinnamon. 15 grams of whole grains, eight grams fiber, nine grams of protein, and 500 mg Omega-3s per serving. Made in USA